When riding a horse, lines are essential for controlling the horse; these lines are referred to as lines in harness racing but are often referred to as "reins" in other applications; and, in the remainder of this specification, reference will only be made to "lines" for simplicity of representation.
These lines are well known to those skilled in the art. By way of illustration and not limitation, some typical reins are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,442,900, 5,148,656 (training reins), 5,094,062 (flex rein), 3,604,183, and the like. The disclosure of each of these United States patents is hereby incorporated by reference into this specification.
Typically the lines are buckled to rings at each end of a bit in the horse's mouth; the lines or reins work together to establish a primary link and means of communication between the horse and the driver or rider. By using the lines to exert or release pressure on the bit, the driver relays commands to the horse. Depending upon the individual horse's temperment and what conditions exist, various amounts of pressure are applied to the lines. In racing competitions, a tremendous amount of pressure is placed on the lines.
If a line breaks away from one side of the bit, the driver loses all control of the horse; he is helpless and subject to being involved in a serious accident. The resulting dangerous situation endangers not only the horse and driver but also any other horses and drivers near the team with the broken line. This type of incident has caused serious injury and death to both man and/or horse. The worst case scenario, which happens all too often, is when a line breaks in a race or during a training mile. The break in the line occurs where the line is buckled to the bit either as a result of stress or human error.
It is an object of this invention to provide an apparatus for controlling a horse which is substantially stronger and less likely to fail than prior art devices.